Fence-post or columnar pillar



'(No ModeL\ S. D. PRY &; W. H; JOHNSON. FENGE POST AND OOLUMNAR PILLAR.

No. 573,'77'7. Patente'd Dec. 22, 1896.

UNITED STATES PATE T OFFICE.

STEPHEN D. FRY, OF ATTICA, AND XVILLIAH H. J OHNSON, OF VEEDERS- BURG,INDIANA, ASSIGNORS OF ONE-THIRD TO ALFRED F. JOHNSON,

OF VEEDERSBURG, INDIANA.

FENCE-POST OR COLUMNAR PlLLAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 573,'777, clatedDecember 22, 1896.

Application filed March 4,1896.

To alluhom it ?way concern:

Be it known that we, STEPHEN D. FRY, residing at Attica, and WILLIAMI-I. J OHNSON, residing at Veedersburg, in the county of Fountain andState of Indiana, citizens of the United States, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Fence-Posts or Columnar Pillars 5 and wedo hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exactdescription of the invention, such as Will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Our invention relates to fence-posts; and it consists in such a postcomprising in its construction a metal standard and molded tubularblocks formed of artificial stone or elay or other suitable material, aswill be hereinafter described and specifically claimed.

The object of this invention is to avoid the cracking or destruction offence-posts by the action of frost, fire, or sudden changes in thetemperature of the weather.

In the Construction of combination iron and U stone fence-posts it isimportant that the metal portion of such posts shall be of lightstructural form, and in order to attain this object provision must bemade for staying and guiding these light standard-posts at a point orpoints above the anchor-blocks by means of blocks of stone, clay, orother suitable material, and this provi sion we have made, as willhereinafter appear, in the construction of our posts with firmly andrigidly connected anchor-blocks and sliding, guiding, and staying blocksof stone or a suitable argillaceous material, such blocks being of adiameter much greater than the metal standard and those which slidebeing remotely located in the earth with respect to the anchor-blocksand above said anchor-blocks, so as to be nearer the surface of theground than the anchor-blocks, where they are liable to be subjected tothe influence of frost and freezing action, but onaccount of theirfreedom to slide they relieve the standard from any strainin g actionfrom the effects oi' such frost or changes of temperature of theweather, while at the same time they form a perfect stay and 'guide tothe same.

In the accompanying drawings, Fgure l is a vertical section of one ofourimproved posts Serial No. 581,'79& (No model) l as set up for use,and Fig. 2 is a horizontal section of the same in the line x x of Fig.1.

A in the drawings is a central standard of about seven feet in length orheight and made of metal or other suitable strong material in either theform of a gas-pipe tube, an angular wrought-metal bar, a solidcylindrical bar, or other known suitable form. The lower end of thisstandard may be slightly enlarged by flaring the lower end of the tubeor bending the angle-iron outward with a fiare, so as to form astop-shoulder a at the bottom of the standard. To the lower end of thestandard a circular or polygonal horizontal block B, of stone or asuitable argillaceous material, is suitably applied and connected firmlyand rigidly, so that the standard shall not be allowed to move up ordown independently of it. Above this firmly and rigidly connected blockB one, two, or more hollow block-sections C, of stone or a suitableargillaceous material, are applied around the standard, being looselyfitted in position, so as to be free to slide up or down on thestandard.

It is preferable to construct the movable portion O of the posts inblocks of uniform size, as illustrated in the drawings, and to have themset apart, but the relative sizes of the blocks is not material.

In applying our improved posts in setting up a fence we dig holes in theground, say, two and one-half or three feet deep, and put into theseholes the metal standards provided with the firmly and rigidly connectedbottom blocks B, said blocks restin g on the shoulders a. We then coverthe said blocks with dirt, making the dirt solid and firm by tamping.lVe then slip over the standards one, two, or more blocks C for forningguides and stays for the standards. All of the guide and stay blocks aremolded with their central holes large enough to insure that the blocksshall be free to slip up and down on the standard without bindingthereon,while the firnly and rigidly connected bottom or anchor blockshave central .holes through them which are of snaller diameter than thefiared portions a of the tubular standards. From the drawings it will beseen that the anchor-blocks bear on solid ground, which is generally lowenough down below the surface to not be subjeoted IOO to ordinary frostor freezing weather. It will be evident that by locating the guiding andstaying bloeks near the surface of the ground and above the blocks Bthey Will be liable to be affected by the frost, and as they are free toslide up and down no injury will be experienced by the standards.

lVith our Construction of post there is no danger of their beingdestroyed by fire, changes of temperature, or by frostor freezing of theground, for in case of freezing and thawing of the ground above thefirnly and rigidly connected anchor-blocks B the loose block or blocks Cwill rise and fall in the ground without disturbing the metal standardand their stone or clay block at the bottom of the same, on account ofsaid standards an'd blocks being firnly held in the ground,which,-asheretofore stated, is packed firmly upon the rgid anchor-blocks. p

The blocks B and C may be made of stone, clay, or any substance ofadequate strength, and, if desired, the uppermost novable blocks mayextend up a short distance above the grouncl.

The posts will, of course, be provided With the usual means forconnecting wire or other fencing material between them, but such con-'nections form nopart of ,the invention here claimed. g

lVhat We claim is- I A post or column formed of a central standard,preferably metal, and having on its lower nected thereto by means of theflaring enlargement at the lowerend of the post, so that the standardscannot slide up or down, and of one or more blocks of stone, or asuitable argillaceous material, and of about the same diameter as thefirnly and ri gidly connected anchorblock and fitted on the standardabove the anchor-block so as to be capable of rising or falling thereonWhile the standard and anchorblock remain firm in the earth firmly andrigidly connected together during frost, or freezing or thawing actions,substantially as described.

In testimony whereof we hereunto aflix our signatures in presence of twowitnesses.

STEPHEN D. FRY. XVILLIAM H. JOHNSON. lVitnesses A. J. BAILEY, \V. C.BAILEY.

